We are gathering to protest the detainment and unfair treatment of Bradley
Manning and the pending grand jury investigation that seeks to embroil
WikiLeaks, its associates, and its supporters in espionage charges. Recent
attacks on its citizens has made it clear to us that the United States
government no longer automatically grants freedom and liberty to its
governed.

David House and other activists in the Boston area have faced heavy
surveillance and computer seizure by homeland security, without warrants,
and have been offered bribes as a result of their connections to WikiLeaks
and Bradley Manning.

These attacks against activists are nothing compared to what we will face if
the grand jury decides to extradite Julian Assange on charges of espionage.
Due to the vague wording of the Espionage Act, there will remain “no
distinction between the leaker, the recipient of the leak, or the
100thperson to redistribute, retransmit, or even retain the national
defense
information that, by that point, is already in the public domain”, a Hearing
Before the House Committee on the Judiciary determined (<http://judiciary.house.gov/hearings/pdf/Vladeck101216.pdf&gt;). This will give
the government the legal groundwork to incriminate anyone who supports
WikiLeaks, and perhaps any organization that provides an outlet for
whistle-blowers in the future.

Subpoenas have been served to David and others in Greater Boston to appear
before the grand jury. The date of his appearance is the day of our protest,
which we have chosen to show our solidarity, as subpoenaed activists risk
being held in contempt and jailed for the duration of the trial should they
refuse to cooperate with the grand jury.

We have taken this abuse long enough. We, Civic Counsel, students and
concerned citizens, believe it is time to stand up for our own rights and
those of the people around us. If we do nothing, we risk losing the rest of
our freedom and privacy. The government seeks to remove even our most basic
rights: the rights to speak up for justice and hold our so-called
“representatives” accountable. The trends of rampant corruption, unnecessary
withholding of information, and unlawful detainment of citizens must end.

Protest with us on Wednesday. This is your country. This is your government.
These are your neighbors who have been targeted. Stand with us.

Not in Boston? Civic Counsel encourages you to organize autonomous action in
your own city. A full list of action in Boston and other cities will be
posted on our website at <www.civiccounsel.org&gt;.

If you are in Boston, we invite you to join us for a banner making party at
Pika <http://pika.mit.edu&gt; on Tuesday the 14th at 6 PM. Please bring your
own supplies if possible. Also please note that no sticks are allowed either
as part of signs or carried by protesters, as they are, apparently,
considered weapons.